Severus Needs Help
by jessieleigh96
Summary: After being hit by a spell from the dark lord, Severus is ill and in need of help from the mediwitch, Poppy. PLEASE review! COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

"Severus, we meet again." The dark lord addressed him. He looked strangly calm, and his eyes were boring into the back of Severus's head. "Any news?"  
>"No, my lord." Severus said shakily. He was shivering, but he wasnt cold.<br>"No news? Nothing? You are supposed to bring me news, Sev." Voldemort replied, with his eyes still locked on Severus's face. Severus had to look away. "You havent bought me news for a long time. Surely something must have happened."  
>"N- no my Lord. Nothing to my knowledge." Severus stuttered.<br>"Really?" Voldemort replied.  
>"Y-yes."<br>"Why so jumpy Severus?" The dark lord asked. _Hes catching on_, Severus thought, _He knows Im lying_. "So?" He prompted Severus.  
>"Im not jumpy." That was the only reply he could think of, even if it was feeble.<br>"Not jumpy? Of course not." The dark lord chuckled. Then he turned serious. "Tell me."  
>"Tell you what, my lord?"<br>"What you are hiding from me." He said, his eyes were now threatening.  
>"Im not hiding everything. Ive told you everything I know." Severus replied.<br>"Then why can I see it in your eyes Severus?" He said. "I can see that youre lying." Severus stayed silent. "So you are lying."  
>"No."<br>"It wasnt a question, it was a fact. It didnt require your answer." He said while walking up to Severus, until his face was only a few centimeters away. Severus didnt like the feeling it was giving him. Yet again he stayed silent. "So are you going to tell me the truth?"  
>"I did tell you the truth." His voice cracked on the last word.<br>"You lie!" The dark lord shouted. Severus reached for the emergency portkey on his wrist, hoping to get away as fast as he possibly could, but he was a little to late. The dark lord swiped his chect with a silent spell as soon as he touch the portkey. Severus felt the tug of the portkey, but then felt an immense amount of pain across his chest. Then he landed hard with a thud on the hospital wing floor, gasping for breath.

Poppy, hearing the thud, rushed into the hospital wing to see Severus writhing in pain on the floor. He was covered in blood, and he was pressing his hands on it to try and make it stop. He was moaning.  
>"Oh God, Sev!" Poppy said and rushed to his side. She could see tears falling over his cheeks and he looked at her with pleading eyes.<br>"Please!" He screamed. "Make it stop!" he said, sobbing as loud as he could, still writhing on the floor.  
>"I will!" Her eyes started to water. "Stop moving,Sev, it will be easier for me to help you." She was trying to stay calm.<br>"It. Hurts. So. Bad!" Severus was screaming.  
>"Please! Stop moving Severus!" She said as a tear slipped down her cheek, and Severus looked away. "Look at me Severus!" She said loudly, hoping he heard her. He turned his head and faced the mediwitch again. She looking into his eyes and saw them becoming unfocused. "Severus! Stay with me please!"<br>"Poppy." He muttered. "Let me sleep."  
>"No! Severus, you must not sleep! You stay awake! You hear me?"<br>"No."  
>"You must do what I say!" The tears were falling down her cheeks now, flowing like two little waterfalls.<br>"It hurts." He was still sobbing, but his voice had turned into a whisper. A puddle of blood had soon surrounded him, and Poppy had knelt in it so it had stained her white mediwitch robes. "Im going to put healing salve on it, so you need to move your hands away. Okay?" Severus didnt reply, but he was still moving. "Okay, moving you hands." He didnt move them. "Sev." She said, and he moved them away reluctantly.

Poppy got the healing salve, and with shaking hands, she applied the salve. It may not have been as neat as she had hoped, but it was the best she could do. She began to sob more when the salve touched Severus skin, Severus had screamed so loud, almost bursting Poppys eardrums. She hated the sound so much, but carried on applying the salve knowing that it would be best.  
>"All done Sev." She said, wiping her eyes. "You can sleep now."<p>

As she said that, the man fell unconsious.


	2. Chapter 2

Poppy tried to calm herself down before trying to left the sleeping man off the floor. The gash was healing, so she had time to try and compose herself. When the gash had closed and scarred, she still hadnt stopped crying. She was still shaking and couldnt let herself come to terms with it. So she gave up trying to compose herself, took out her wand and tried to levitate Severus off the cold floor. However, she found that she couldnt do it. It took her a long time to even make him move slightly. Frustrated, she got angry, stormed over to the closest wall and kicked it, hard.

Hopping in pain, the tears came down hard again, and she shouted out in pain. As the pain receded, she paced around, wondering what to do. Try to help Severus up, clean up the blood? What should she do, she couldnt think straight.

While she was lost in her worried thoughts, she heard the door bang open. Minerva strode in and gasped at the sight infront of her.  
>"Oh my, what happened here!" She said, running over to Severus's side. "Why didnt you put him on a bed?" She was annoyed.<br>"I-I-I couldnt. I tried." She said, hoping Minerva would understand. She didnt know the full story. She cried silently while watching Minerva lift Severus onto a bed.  
>"Are you going to help?" She asked Poppy, who stood there, staring. "Poppy, whats the matter!"<br>"He - I - He was hurt - I tried to -"  
>"Calm down Poppy. He's alright!"<br>"You didnt see that - He was screaming - He was in so much pain." She sobbed again, shaking. Minerva threw a pitying look at her, and cleaned up the blood. "Look - M-my robes." Poppy cried, not looking at them. She couldnt stand to see all the blood on her clothes. She not felt ill, partly because of all the crying, and partly because of the blood on her robes.  
>"Poppy." Minerva said and hugged her. Poppy didnt have the effort to hug her back; she just stood there with the tears still falling down her face. "Let me get you a drink."<br>"Im not thirsty." She said.  
>"You need to drink Poppy."<br>"No." She said. "I need to look after Severus." She walked shakily over to Severus's side, and took out a muggle thermometer. She tried to move his shirt out the way to put it under his arm, but she couldnt undo the buttons with her shaking hands. "Minerva."  
>"Yes?" She was over to poppys side in an instance.<br>"Can you do this? I cant."  
>"Sure." Poppy stepped back and watched Minerva take his temperature. "41.1" She said, and conjured a wet cloth from a hankychief. Poppy was proud of her friend for looking after him so well. She suddenly felt sick, and her legs were wobbling. She could see a few stars infront of her eyes, and she knew this wasnt good.<br>"Min." She whispered. Minerva turned around to see Poppys face pale.  
>"Poppy?" She said and conjured a chair for her friend. "Are you alright?"<br>"No." She said. "Im dizzy, im shaking, and I just saw Severus like that on the floor in pain, and it was so horrible!" She said and put her head in her hands.  
>"Shhh calm down Poppy!" Minerva said and took her into a hug. "He is fine."<br>"You didnt see him." She cried on her friends shoulder. "He wanted to give up but I made him carry on."  
>"You did well. You did all you could do." Minerva reassured, and Poppy stood up and walked over to him.<br>"No I didnt. I could even put him on a bed." She said before she started to sway.  
>"Poppy," Minerva said rushing over to her. "Dont work yourself up like this. Go and lay down." She helped her friend to the next bed.<br>"Im sorry." She said still crying.  
>"Try and rest. You worked yourself up." She soothed her friend.<br>"Im sorry, im sorry." She said still crying, and she shut her eyes.  
>"Dont be. You did nothing wrong." Minerva waited until she knew her friend was asleep before floo calling Albus.<p>

"Albus, can you come and help me?" She asked.


	3. Chapter 3

"Minerva? Why are you calling me from the hospital wing?" Albus asked, confused.  
>"Severus came home injured, and Poppy was struggling. Can you come and help?" She asked.<br>"Sure, one second and il be there."

Then Albus stepped through the fireplace. He took a look at the scene infront of him.  
>"What happened to Poppy?" He asked.<br>"Well, she panicked about Severus and his state and she couldnt even lift him onto a bed. I think its because she saw him in lots of pain and the blood was on her robes." Minerva explained.  
>"Blood? What happened to Severus?"<br>"Im not sure, but when I came in here, he was laying on the floor unconsious and he had a huge scar across his chest. Poppy probably managed to put some healing salve on it when he got back." She said, looking towards Poppy. "She worked herself up a lot so I told her to sleep and I said id sort it out."  
>"You did a good job. Want me to check him over?" Albus offered.<br>"Yes please. You are better at diagnosing than me." Minerva said, appreciated.

Albus walked over to Severus, and pulled out his wand. He used a diagnostic charm on the sleeping man.  
>"Minerva, I dont know what spell he was hit with. It wasnt overly dark though as the gash wouldnt have been able to heal that well." Albus explained. "We will need to keep an eye on him. He has a fever too. 41 degrees."<br>"I checked earlier and it was 41.1. Its gone down slightly."  
>"Thats good, but we still need to check every few hours."<br>"I will. When Poppy wakes up she will be back to normal I hope. She isnt ill, she just worked herself up too much. Rest should do her good."  
>"Speaking of Poppy, want me to check on her aswell?"<br>"Oh, would you? Thanks very much Albus."  
>"Its no problem at all.<p>

After watching Albus check on Poppy, Minerva walked over to him so see the results.  
>"So?" She asked.<br>"She has a very slight fever, only point 2 of a degree over what she is supposed to have, so I shouldnt worry about it. She has no other illnesses apart from a small headache so I gave her a little amount of painkiller. When she wakes up it should be gone."  
>"Thats good then. I will be alright here now if you want to go up to your study."<br>"Thanks Minerva. I need my full amount of sleep otherwise my mood will not be great tomorrow."  
>"OKay Albus." Minerva chuckled.<br>"See you tomorrow, Minerva."  
>"Bye Albus." Minerva watched him leave the hospital wing, then decided to sit next two her two collegues for the night to watch their behaviors.<p>

In the morning, Minerva was still sitting next to Severus and Poppy, and around eight, Poppy began to stir. She opened her eyes and the first thing she noticed was Minerva.  
>"Min?" She said.<br>"Hey Poppy."  
>"Is he alright?" She asked with a worried expression. Minerva was worried that she would start to cry again.<br>"He is fine Poppy. He hasnt woken yet but when I last checked on him his fever had gone down."  
>"Can I see him?"<br>"Sure." Minerva helped her out of the bed. She noticed that Poppy was still shaking a little bit. She looked at him and her eyes watered.  
>"He looks so peaceful." She said.<br>"Yeah he does." Minerva said and put her hand on Poppys shoulder. Poppy turned to face Minerva and Minerva saw she was crying.  
>"Poppy." She said sympathetically. She hugged her friend. "Want to talk about it? You always told me that talking about something made it easier."<br>"Yeah." Poppy said, sniffed, then wiped her eyes on the back of her hand. They both sat down on two vacant chairs next to his bed. "Well, I was in my office, reading, and I heard a thud and a scream, so I ran out of my office and saw Severus on the floor in a lot of pain. I went over to him and he pleaded with me to make the pain stop and I didnt like seeing him like that. I put healing salve on the cut but it made him scream louder and I realised then that I was kneeling in his blood on the floor." She cried harder.  
>"You stopped the bleeding Poppy. You saved his life." Minerva comforted.<br>"I know, but I know that with that rotten dark lord still here, Severus will come back even worse one day. Maybe then I wont be able to save him."  
>"Of course you can Poppy. Never underestimate your abilities. You are the best mediwitch I know." Minerva said.<br>"You really mean that?" Poppy asked, shocked.  
>"Yes, I really mean that!" Minerva said. "And I know a lot of mediwitches." Poppy smiled at her.<br>"Thanks Minerva, for everything."  
>"No problem, Poppy." She replied and they hugged again.<br>"So he will definatly be alright?" Poppy asked, calmer now.  
>"Albus said that we will need to keep and eye on the wound as he didnt know what spell it was when he did a diagnostic spell on it."<br>"You dont know the spell?" She said, all sign of weakness gone. "Well we need to take his temperature again! We need to keep doing diagnostic spells until we know he is perfectly fine."  
>"There's the Poppy I know." Minerva said with a smile.<p> 


	4. Chapter 4

The two women kept checking Severus' temperature avery two hours for the rest of the afternoon. Poppy was still exausted, so when she dosed off in her office, Minerva decided to let her sleep.

She went to check on Severus for the fifth time that day, and saw that he was still sleeping. He still hadnt woken from the events the other day, but he should wake soon. He looked peaceful, but to Minerva, he looked a little bit pale. So she stuck the thermometer under his arm as she couldnt do it with spells. When she took it out, it showed that he had a fever, not too bad, but it was still a fever. it was 38 degrees._ If it gets any higher, I need to wake Poppy_, she thought, _I hope she wakes soon so I dont have to be the one to ruin her sleep_. She kept taking his temperature constantly for the next hour, and it stayed the same. It didnt go up or down, so she decided to stop checking Severus and check on Poppy quickly.

She walked into Poppy's office, but on her way in, her robes brushed past a vase and it smashed onto the floor causing Poppy to jump awake.  
>"Minerva!" She said, with her hand on her chest, taking deep breaths. "You nearly scared me to death!"<br>"Sorry! Ill repare it!" And with one flick of her wand, the vase was back on the table as if nothing had happened.  
>"How long was I asleep?" She asked.<br>"About an hour. Sorry, I was going to let you sleep for longer." Minerva apologised.  
>"No, its okay. I should be helping you check on Severus. Any change?"<br>"He has a slight fever now, 38 degrees. I kept checking it to see if it went up, but it stayed the same for an hour. Thats when I came to check on you but woke you up instead." Minerva said.  
>"He has a fever? Did you give him any fever reducer?"<br>"No not yet."  
>"Lets go check him again." She said and got up a bit too fast as she had to grab Minervas arm.<br>"Poppy?" Minerva asked, concerned.  
>"Sorry, got up too fast." She said.<br>"Okay, well if your sure." Minerva said and followed Poppy to Severus. Poppy waved her wand over Severus.  
>"Hmmm, its 38.1 now. Ill try him on some fever reducer. He might just have caught a cold, or it could be something worse." Poppy explained.<br>"Il go and get it. Where is it?" Minerva asked.  
>"In my office, on the shelf closest to you on the right as you walk in."<br>"Okay." She left to fetch it, and came back with a small vial. "Here."  
>"Thanks Min." Poppy said. She spelled it into Severus stomach as he wasnt able to swallow it. "It should start coming down now. Il check his temperature again in a sec."<p>

Poppy checked his temperature again, but his temperature was still climbing.  
>"Minerva," Poppy said, "Its not going down."<br>"What do you mean its not going down? We just gave him fever reducer!"  
>"Its going up." She used the diagnostic spell again to see it rose another point one of a degree in the space of one minute. "Its at 38.3 now!"<br>"Ill call Albus!" Minerva said, rushing over to the fireplace. While Minerva called Albus, Poppy applied cold compresses to Severus' wrists, ankles and forehead, to see if it made a difference. After she had finished, Albus was just walking into the hospital wing.  
>"Albus, we need to find out what spell was used on him. I cant get his fever down!" Poppy said.<br>"I will go and speak to Professor Lupin. He might know what spell this is." He said.  
>"Okay. Minerva, will you help me try to cool him down?" Poppy said.<br>"Yes of course!" She said and went to stand over the other side of Severus' bed.

"Please hurry Albus. I dont know how long I can keep his temperature like this." Poppy said, shaking her head, and applying more cold compresses.  
>"I will do my best." He replied and left.<p> 


	5. Chapter 5

As Albus made his way to Professor Lupins office, thoughts were running wild in his head. What could that spell be? Whywas it used on Severus? Had he not answered a question? Had he not done what was asked of him? More and more questions arrived in his head the more he tried to think of answers.

Arriving outside Professor Lupins office, he didnt bother knocking. This was too important.  
>"Albus?" Lupin said, annoyed by the outbust. Seeing Albus's expression, Lupin knew better than to moan. "Whats going on?"<br>"I need your help, Remus." Albus said. "Severus came back from a call from the Dark Lord, but he came back injured. Poppy healed the wound, but we dont know what spell was used on him."  
>"It wasnt dark though, as it wouldnt have healed." Remus said.<br>"We know, but we have no idea what spell was used." Albus said.  
>"Let me come and see him." Professor Lupin said. "If I can see the scar, it will give me an indication of what type of spell it was."<br>"Sure, lets go."  
>"Do you want to go through the Floo? It will be quicker." Remus said.<br>"Yeah it will." Albus said, changing direction and following Lupin into the fireplace.

"Albus, its still going up." Poppy said, worried. "Its at 39 degrees now."  
>"Thirty nine?" He gasped.<br>"Yes im afraid so." Poppy said sadly.  
>"Okay. Let me see the scar." Professor Lupin said.<br>"Why?" Poppy asked.  
>"It will tell me what kind of spell it was."<br>"Oh, okay." she replied, taking a step back from Severus's bed, letting Remus take a closer look at the healed wound.

Poppy, Albus and Minerva watched Remus examine the wound, and his many facial expressions. He kept mumbling to himself, looking at him from different angles. Finally, about five minutes later, he stept away from the sleeping man.  
>"So?" Poppy said, anxious.<br>"I cant say for definate, but I think its some kind of charm that Snape invented himself." Lupin said.  
>"Why do you think that?" Minerva asked.<br>"I know that Snape used a spell like this when we were younger. It caused a deep gash on anyone who got in the path of it."  
>"Do you know the name of it?" Albus asked.<br>"Im afraid not, but I know he used to write it in an old potions book. It definitly looked like it had been used a lot."  
>"There is a few old potion books in the cupboard, used as spares." Minerva said. "Two of my lions had to borrow books at the beginning of the year, and I know that one of them was extremely worn."<br>"Who had this book?" Albus asked.  
>"Harry." She replied. "Do you want me to bring him here with the book?"<br>"Yes please." Remus said.

Minerva left the room and returned no longer than ten minutes later with Harry Potter, the sixth year gryffindor that held the worn potions book.  
>"Can I look at the book?" Remus asked him.<br>"Sure." He said. After watching Lupin flick through the pages.  
>"This is his." Lupin said. "Im sure of it."<br>"How do you know?" Minerva asked.  
>"It says here 'Property of the half blood prince'." Lupin read. "He used to call himself that."<br>"Sounds like Sev." Poppy said.  
>"But which one is it?" Remus said. "There are so many spells in here that Ive never heard of."<br>"Are the counter spells written with them?" Albus asked.  
>"Yes." Professor Lupin said.<br>"So, there is a way to find out which spell it is." He replied.  
>"How?" Lupin said with a questioning eyebrow.<br>"We test them." Albus said.  
>"On what?"<br>"Anyone who is willing to be tested on. The counter spells are right there, so any pain from any spell will be gone as soon as we see the effect of the spell. Anyone be willing to be tested on?" He said. Minerva stepped back, and the rest looked away. All but one.

"I'll do it."


	6. Chapter 6

"Poppy! You cant!" Minerva said, shocked.  
>"Why not? If it makes Severus better?" she said.<br>"I dont want you to get hurt!" Minerva whispered.  
>"Min, ill be fine! The counter spells are there, so if I do get hurt, it will stop."<br>"Poppy..."  
>"No." Poppy said before Minerva could finish. "I will do this, for Severus."<br>"Are you sure?" Professor Lupin asked.  
>"Yes Im sure! I have a good immune system as I havent been ill in years, so I can recover quicker from any spell." Poppy wasnt going to loose this arguement.<br>"Please dont Poppy! Let me do it! I dont want to see you hurt!" Minerva was almost in tears.  
>"Minerva, no. I will do it."<br>"But we need you to help heal whoever is hit. If you are hit, you cant help yourself!" Minerva said.  
>"Yes, but Albus can!" She said, almost in tears herself. "Please Minerva! Just let me do this!"<br>"I think Poppy should do it."  
>"Albus!" Minerva shouted.<br>"No, Minerva. I think she is right. She will be able to recover quicker." He said.  
>"But-"<br>"Thanks Albus." Poppy interupted her. "So I can do it?" Minerva was the only one to object.  
>"Please Poppy. For me." Minerva pleaded.<br>"Minerva stop it! I want to do this." Poppy said.  
>"You will end up like Severus! Hurt!" Minerva was crying.<br>"But I will recover!" Poppy retorted. Minerva had nothing to say. "So its settled. I will do this." A sob came from Minerva, but Poppy ignored her. No other objections were said.  
>"Good. Whas the first spell?" She asked Professor Lupin.<br>"Er, its 'Listenupium." He said. "You ready?"  
>"Sure."<br>"Albus, be ready with the counter spell, which is 'Quieterium.'" Lupin informed him.  
>"Okay.<br>"Okay Poppy? One, two, three. Listenupium!" He cast the spell towards her, and she slammed her hands to her ears and knelt down to the floor. Minerva gasped.  
>"Quieterium!" Albus said.<br>"Ouch." Poppy said.  
>"What did it do?" Lupin asked.<br>"I heard a really high pitched loud noise. It hurt my ears." She explained.  
>"Are you ready to trythe next one? Or shall we wait?" He asked.<br>"Next one. We dont have much time."  
>"Okay, this one is called 'Breathattakian'" Remus read out. "Albus, the counter spell is 'Breatheasy.'"<br>"Okay." Albus said.  
>"One, two, three! Breathattakian!"<p>

Poppy fell to the ground, clutching her chest, trying to breath. She started going red in the face, but no blood could be seen.  
>"Breatheasy." Albus said, and Poppy started gasping.<br>"Are you alright?" Minerva asked through tearful eyes.  
>"Yes." Poppy managed to say before gasping again.<br>"Maybe we should wait for the next one." Albus said, fearful of the next spell.  
>"No, no Im fine! Poppy said, still out of breath, but nreathing a little bit easier now. "We need to do this now!"<br>"Okay, just take a minute to get your breath back." Professor Lupin said. Minerva walked over to Poppy and helped her stand up and let her lean on her. After a minute, she just about had her breath back and no longer needed to lean on Minerva.  
>"Okay. Im ready for the next one."<br>"Okay. This one is called 'Sectumsempra.'" Professor Lupin said, reading the page. "The counter curse is Vulnera Sanentur."  
>"Got it." Albus said.<br>"I have a bad feeling about this one." Minerva said.  
>"What makes you think that?" Albus asked, curious.<br>"You know, they always said Third time lucky." she replied shrugging her shoulders.  
>"She will be fine Minerva." He tried to reassure his collegue as he saw a tear fall down her cheek.<br>"Lets go!" Poppy was getting impatient.  
>"Okay! One, two, three. Sectumsempra."<p>

This time, blood spurted from the mediwitch's chest, splattering Minerva, Remus and Albus. Poppy fell to the floor, clutched her chest, and screamed. Albusran next to her, as did Remus, and Remus grabbed Poppys hands to keep them awayfrom her chest while Albus muttered the counter spell. Minerva, behind them, had paled and was taking deep breaths with tears still falling down her face. Poppy now lay motionless on the floor.  
>"I had to put a sleeping charm on her, so she could get all her energy back."<br>"At least we know what spell it is." Remus said. Albus turned to Minerva.  
>"Minerva! Youare as pale as a ghost!" He said, watching her sway, even though she was sitting down. He tranfigured the chair into a bed and layed her down, to cure her dizziness and hopefully make her feel better.<br>"She is fine, Minerva. She just needs to get her energy back."  
>"I know. I didnt like it, thats all." She replied shakily. "Please, just get the blood off me."<br>"Dont worry, Im on it!" Remus called to her. He was cleaning up the blood on the floor and then on all of their robes.  
>"Why would Severus invent that spell? How did he manage it in his school days?" Minerva asked.<br>"He will kill me for telling you, but James used to bully him. As James was popular, lots of others copied him." Remus explained.  
>"Oh." She replied, while she shut her eyes and concentrated on her breathing while a wave of nausea hit her.<br>"He used it once, but he reversed the effect right away so that James didnt lose much blood."  
>"He used it on James?" Minerva said shocked.<br>"Yes! But James got what he deserved." Remus said.  
>"Okay."<p>

"How are we going to use the counter spell on Severus when the cut has healed already?" Minerva asked.  
>"I can only think of one way." Remus said, and looked at Albus.<br>"No, not that!" Minerva said, with new tears forming in her eyes.  
>"Im afraid so."<p> 


	7. Chapter 7

_**First, I want to reply to a review by Excessivelyperky - Thanks for the reviews. In the second chapter where Poppy couldnt get Severus onto a bed, Minerva got annoyed saying "Why havent you put him on a bed?" and then later saying "Are you going to help?" So I just thought that we could assume he as put into a bed then. Thanks for the reviews :)  
><strong>_

"Im afraid we need to use the spell again to open up the wound, and then heal it properly with the counter spell, not just the healing salve." Remus said.  
>"No." Minerva said, shaking her head and bringing herself into an upright position.<br>"We have to." Remus said. "Its the only way to cure him properly."  
>"The only way?" She asked, fearful.<br>"Yes Minerva. You dont have to watch. You can take care of Poppy." Albus suggested.  
>"When will you do it?"<br>"As soon as possible." Remus said. "I guess we can do it now. Are you alright to get up, Minerva?"  
>"I, I think so." She stood up and made her way slowly over to Poppys bed. She began taking Poppys temperature even though it wasnt needed.<br>"Shall we do it Albus?" Remus asked. "Are you willing to do the counter spell while I do the first?"  
>"Sure, lets go." Albus said. "Minerva, please dont look."<br>"I wasnt planning on it." She said.  
>"Okay. One, two three." Remus said, shooting a look at Minerva. "Sectumsempra."<p>

Blood once again splattered the walls, but didnt quite reach Poppys bed, so Minerva was safe from being splattered again. She looked up when she heard Albus mutter the counter spell, and she felt dizzy seeing him like that. She tried to find a chair, but there wasnt any nearby. She decided to take deep breaths, but the floor felt like it was tilting beneath her feet. Trying to grab onto the bed, but failing, someone grabbed her arm to stop her falling, and then everything was black.  
>"Albus? Remus? What is going on?" Pomona said after entering the wing just to see Minerva swaying. She gasped when she saw what stood infront of her.<br>"Pomona, Ill explain everything in a minute. Could you possibly get Minerva onto a bed?" Remus asked.  
>"Sure." She said, picking up the Minervas limp body and putting it on the bed next to Poppys. She then watched Albus and Remus clean up the blood, and check over Severus.<br>"Now tell me," She demanded. "What has been going on? Why are Severus, Poppy and now Minerva all in beds?"  
>"Okay, this is a long story, but I will tell you what I have been told. From what I know, Severus came back from a call and he had a gash on his chest. Poppy healed it with the salve, but she was distraught so she couldnt put him on a bed. I think that was when Minerva came in and helped Poppy out, and let Poppy rest." Remus explained.<br>"Thats when Minerva called me." Albus said. "She needed help checking on Severus as Poppy was sleeping, and when she woke, Severus's temperature climbed high and we needed to find out what the spell was that was used on him."  
>"Thats where I came in." Remus said. "They wanted to me to find out if the spell was dark or anything, but I didnt know. I recalled that Severus had made a few of his own spells in his school days and it turned out that Harry Potter had got hold of the book Severus had written them in. We found spells but we needed to test them, so Poppy volunteered."<br>"Poppy volunteered? Why?" Pomona asked.  
>"We knew the counter spells, and she trusted us to take care of her. More importantly, she wanted to help Severus." Remus said.<br>"She will be okay right?" She asked.  
>"Yes, but she needs rest at the moment, which Is why she is sleeping." Albus said.<br>"Minerva felt quite faint after seeing Poppy like that, but soon recovered. However, we had to perform the spell again on Severus to let the would be healed properly with the counter spell. Minerva didnt take this very well, as you just saw." Remus said.  
>"So thats that." Albus concluded.<br>"Will they all be alright?" Pomona asked. "Do you need any help?"  
>"We dont need any, but you are welcome to stay and help if you really want to." Albus said.<br>"Yes, I will take care of Minerva." She said, and heard slight movement from behind her. Minerva was stirring. Bustling over to Minervas bed, she spoke to her gently.

"Minerva." She said. "Wake up." It took Minerva a minute or two to open her eyes, but she managed eventually.  
>"Pomona? What are you doing here?" Minerva asked, slightly slurring her words.<br>"I came in just to see you pass out." She explained. "Your lucky I was there to catch you."  
>"I fainted?" She asked, comfused.<br>"Yes. I think it was because of what you saw over there." Pomona pointed, and Minerva looked.  
>"Oh yeah, I remember now." She said, wincing and putting her hand to her head. This didnt go unnoticed.<br>"Want a painkiller?" Pomona asked.  
>"Please." Minerva said, relieved when she asked. Minerva was watching Poppy sleep while Pomona was getting the potion. When she returned, she looked towards Pomona again.<br>"Thank you." Minerva said, sitting up.  
>"No problem."<p>

Minerva felt the painkiller start to work almost instantly. She then felt better to sit up, then she walked over to Poppy. Minerva looked at the healed scar on her chest.  
>"Albus?" Minerva said. "Will she be in any pain when she wakes up?"<br>"I shouldnt think so. If there was any pain, it would be a small amount." He answered.  
>"Okay." She said and found a chair on the other side of Poppys bed. Why couldnt that chair have been on the other side when she needed it most? She took Poppys hand and watched her sleep.<br>"She will be okay, Min." Remus said, looking sypathetically at his collegue.  
>"I know." She sighed. "I want her to wake up."<br>"The sleeping charm I placed on her will only last another hour or two." Albus said.  
>"Okay, I will wait. What about Severus?" She asked. "He will be alright now?"<br>"Should be. His temperature is coming down nicely. He might wake up within the next day or two.  
>"Okay, thanks for your help." She turned to look at Pomona and Remus. "All of you."<br>"Its no problem." Remus said, and smiled at her.  
>"No problem at all." Albus said.<br>"I will always be there for my two best friends." Pomona replied, which made Minerva smile. She liked to know she had so many people looking out for her. 


	8. Chapter 8

The next day, Poppy woke from the healing sleep. She had no pain at all, even though she might have had a small amount of it. Minerva sat with her throughout the dayas she had been confined to bed rest.  
>"Why cant I get out of bed?" She moaned to Minerva. "Im perfectly fine!"<br>"Albus wont allow it, and since he knows more about healing than me, I have no choice but to listen to him." She answered. "He is probably getting you back for all the times you keep students here when they want to leave."Minerva smirked. Poppy grunted, leaned back and folded her arms. "Now now, no need to sulk." She said sarcastically.  
>"Im not sulking." Poppy answered.<br>"Good." Minerva chuckled. "Want to play wizards chess?"  
>"Sure. I have nothing else to do."<br>"Poppy...what did I tell you about sulking!" Minerva said, laughing.  
>"Fine." She said and faked a smile.<br>"There we go." Minerva laughed again.

While the two friends were playing a game of wizards chess, Pomona and Albus were tending to Severus. While his temperature slowly declined, he still didnt wake.  
>"Albus." Pomona said. "Do you think he will wake soon?"<br>"Well, his fever is still a little bit high, but it shouldnt be long. Later today possibly." He informed her.  
>"Can we try Ennervating him?" She asked.<br>"Already did this morning." He said glumly. "We just have to wait for him to wake naturally."  
>"Poor Sev." Minerva piped up after hearing their conversation.<br>"Yeah."Poppy agreed. "I know that the spell hurts." She said and rubbed her now healed chest. Minerva shuddered.

"Do you know how hard that was for me to watch?" Minerva said quietly.  
>"Minerva..." Poppy said.<br>"It was horrible." She said, her eyes watering at the thought. "I saw the gash open... and saw you fall." Poppy said nothing, but looked down at chess board. "I felt sick, Poppy, sick at the thought of Voldemort using Severus's spell on him." A tear spilled over her cheek. "I nearly passed out watching that."  
>"Im sorry Minerva... but I had to do it." Poppy said, still avoiding Minervas eyes.<br>"But then, when I was sat with you, I saw it all again. That time I did faint."  
>"Oh my, you are alright now though?" Poppy asked with concern.<br>"Yeah, physically."  
>"Whats that supposed to mean?" Poppy said, confused.<br>"I have to live with the memories of you and Severus in pain. It was horrible. I feel sick at the thought." She sobbed.  
>"Minerva... come here." Poppy said, pulling her best friend into a hug. Minerva happily hugged back, knowing her friend was still hear.<br>"You promise me, that you will never, ever, worry me like that again?" She asked sternly, wiping her eyes on the back of her hand.  
>"I cant promise... if this happens again then-"<br>"I will do it." Minerva interrupted. "I cant see you in pain like that again."  
>"But then I have to see you like that!" Poppy said.<br>"Then you will see how I felt." Minerva said. "But who knows. It probably wont happen again."  
>"I suppose so." Poppy agreed. "Im sorry." She said, pulling her friend into another hug. Everything went silent.<p>

"Aww." Pomona said, breaking the silence. She went over to her two friends and hugged them both.  
>"I miss these days when we were all here, as students." Poppy said, watery eyed.<br>"Me too." Minerva agreed. She then looked over to Albus, who was watching them. Minerva could almost see jealousy in his eyes. "Oh Albus! Get over here!" She said, and pulled Albus into the group hug.

Pulling away, Minerva and Poppy continued to play wizard chess, and Pomona and Albus went back to watching over Severus. However, their game stopped short when they heard a grunt on the other side of the room.  
>"Severus!" Poppy cried, leaping out of bed.<br>"Poppy! Slow down! You are on bed rest!" Albus said.  
>"I dont care. Who is the mediwitch here?" She said, and knew she got her point across when Albus didnt reply.<br>"Severus?" Minerva asked, coming up behind them.  
>"Ssh! He waking up!" Poppy said, silencing her friend. "Severus. Wake up."<br>"Huh?" He said, opening his eyes to the bright room, squinting. "Poppy?"  
>"Thank Merlin you're alright!" She said, hugging him.<br>"Whats going on?"  
>"You were hurt answering one of the dark lords calls." Poppy said, getting tearful at the memory. "Do you remember?"<br>"I remember being in pain and lying on the floor." He said, putting his arm over his eyes to shield the light. Poppy grabbed her wand and lowered the lighting. "Thanks."  
>"No problem." She replied. "Are you in any kind of pain?"<br>"Not at the moment." He tried to move. "Nope."  
>"Good." Poppy said. "Now rest."<br>"I have been resting already." He moaned.  
>"Yes, but you are still weak, like I am." She said.<br>"You? Why are you weak too?"  
>"I sacrificed myself to find out which spell hit you." She said.<br>"What was it?"  
>"One of yours. Sectumsempra, I believe."<br>"Oh." He said, wincing at the thought of Poppy under the Sectumsempra spell.  
>"Well, now rest. We will tell you the rest when you are better.<br>"Fine." He agreed, noticing he felt tired. He drifted of to sleep in the next few minutes.


	9. Chapter 9

In the next morning, Severus woke up feeling refreshed; This was a feeling that he had not felt in a long time. Why hadnt he felt like this before? All those nights spent in the potions classroom brewing, and now he knew he had to stop it. He needed this feeling more.  
>"Morning, Sev." Poppy said, after noticing he was awake. "Hungry?"<br>"A little bit, yes." He noticed. "Actually, a lot."  
>"Thats an improvement then." She said. "What would you like? Porridge? Eggs?"<br>"Um, eggs would be nice."  
>"Okay." She called for her house elf and the next minute a tray of eggs appeared on Severus's lap. He ate them all, and felt full when he was finished.<br>"That was really nice." He said.  
>"Glad to hear it. I suspect youre feeling better?" Poppy said, as Minerva walked in.<br>"Hey Severus." She said, cheerful. "You look better this morning."  
>"I feel it too, thanks." He replied, with a smile almost appearing on his face.<br>"So you feel better then?" Poppy asked, getting back to their conversation before Minerva interrupted.  
>"Yes, a lot, thanks Poppy."<br>"Good to hear!" She said and threw an unexpected diagnostic charm onto Severus. He glared at her.  
>"Sorry, it was necessary."<br>"Well?" He said.  
>"Temperature of 37.6 degrees, no headache, no chest pains." She read out off the little piece of parchment from the diagnostic spell. "With those results, I might let you leave later this afternoon."<br>"Why not now?" He asked.  
>"You just woke up, Severus. I will keep you here for observation for a couple of hours."<br>"But I wanted to go to lunch." He said glumly.  
>"If you behave, I will let you go as long as you come back here after to let me check you over one last time."<br>"Okay."  
>"Lunch is in three hours, and you must stay until then." She said and bustled off into her office.<p>

Lunch arrived and Severus was able to attend. He spoke to his Slytherins as he hadnt had the chance to see them for three days. The staff were also happyto see him, and he almost seemed happy to see them aswell. He looked almost in a cheerful mood, well, cheerful for Professor Snape anyway. After having a wonderful lunch, he returned to the hospital wing for his check up.  
>"Still feel alright?" Poppy asked.<br>"Right as rain." He said as a big grin flashed across his face.  
>"Its nice to see you smile Sev." She said as she waved her wand over him. He quickly wiped it off his face.<br>"Dont get used to it." He said embarrassed.  
>"Well, your temperature is normal now, no nausea, no headache. I think you are good to go." She said, patting him on the shoulder.<br>"Thanks." He said, then he got up to leave, but then Poppy put her hand on his shoulder.  
>"Severus, please, please dont scare me like that again." She said.<br>"Ill try. No promises. I cant ignore the calls." He tried to reassure.  
>"Oh Sev." She said and hugged him. He slowly hugged her back. Then she pulled away. "Im glad youre alright." She said. Severus just grunted. He then left the hospital wind, as good as new.<p> 


End file.
